State House group to have casino proposal hearing here

FRUITPORT TOWNSHIP — The state House committee that is reviewing the proposed resolution to build an American Indian casino in Muskegon County is expected to come to the Muskegon area to take local testimony on the proposal.

Doug Bennett

Bert Johnson

State Rep. Bert Johnson, the chairman of the Regulatory Reform committee, plans to schedule a committee hearing on the casino legislation in the coming weeks at a yet-to-be-determined location much closer to the community that would be home to the casino-centered development proposed by the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians.

One of the amendments to the tribe’s compact, allowing for the casino at the former Great Lakes Downs racetrack site, requires the approval of the state House and state Senate. The area’s state representatives and local officials have voiced their displeasure that the legislation, which was introduced in April, has yet to be voted on by the full House.

The committee took initial testimony May 26 in Lansing, but the hearing ended before all of the testimony could be made.

State Rep. Doug Bennett, D-Muskegon Township, continues to blame House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford, for his failure to send the resolution directly to the House floor. He also questions the cancellation of planned committee hearings over the last two weeks.

“That’s fine and dandy if they want to come over here,” said Bennett, who had yet to receive word about the committee’s plans for a Muskegon-area hearing. “I don’t get why they’re holding this up.”

Bennett originally introduced the legislation. He is a casino proponent, touting the proposed development’s ability to create 755 direct jobs and 418 indirect construction jobs.

The date, time and location are still being scheduled for the committee hearing planned in Muskegon County. Johnson, D-Detroit, expects a hearing in the community in and around the proposed casino to make it more convenient for the local community to “make their voices heard” on the issue.

“As chair of the House committee on Regulatory Reform, it’s my job to oversee the process of determining whether the tribe’s proposal will best serve the needs of Muskegon residents and our state as a whole,” Johnson wrote in a letter to The Chronicle. “This is a decision that will significantly impact all of West Michigan, and while I’d like nothing more than to get jobs and investment flowing into Muskegon County, we have a responsibility as lawmakers to do our due diligence.”

Andrew Mutavdzija, Johnson’s legislative director, said that the hearing would likely be near the end of this month or early July. He said Johnson’s office would work with the offices of Bennett and state Rep. Mary Valentine, D-Norton Shores, to schedule the meeting date and location.

Bennett, Valentine and members of the tribe’s leadership provided testimony at the May 26 hearing. In addition, opposition to the legislation was made public during the hearing from other Indian tribes, corporate casino operators and anti-gambling groups.

In addition to the resolution, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians still needs to complete multiple studies, including an environmental impact statement for the proposed site, and approval from the federal Secretary of Indian Affairs for 60 acres to be taken into “trust” before a casino can be constructed.